Blood Runs Thick
by KuhakuSpirit
Summary: CHAPTER 3 IS HERE! Aris Dinell, a young bounty hunter, discovers the shocking truth about her past. Will it help her along her path to self discovery, or will it spell certain doom for a legacy long forgotten? Please R&R.I'd like to know what y'all think.
1. An Orphan Without A Cause

DISCLAIMER: IN NO WAY, SHAPE, OR FORM, DO I OWN STAR WARS, OR ANY OTHER RELATED CHARACTERS AND THINGS THAT BELONG TO MR. GEORGE LUCAS. HE CREATED START WARS. FOR THE EXCEPTION OF THE CHARACTERS THAT I HAVE CREATED MYSELF, I DO NOT OWN ANY OF THE OTHER CHARACTERS THAT RELATE TO THE USE OF OTHER AUTHORS' WORK.  
Chapter 1  
  
There was a bright flash of red light, and there was a dim sound of blaster shots being fired. Aris Dinell woke up with a slight headache, and tried to recall what she had previously dreamt about. It was hard focusing with the thick, lingering smell of burnt flesh high in the air, but the 7 year old wandered from her room to her mother's, to see what had caused that horrid smell.  
  
When she approached the doorway, Aris stood still; for her eyes filled with disbelief. Something stung at her eyes painfully, and when she noticed the salty tears, she brushed them away like an annoying bug of the summertime.   
  
Backing away from her mother's singed corps, Aris wanted to pinch herself and hope that this was all a dream. But the true reality was, that something, or yet, someone, had slaughtered her mother, rendering her a total orphan.  
  
At the age of 2, her father was killed by a traveling stranger, leaving her and her mother to fend for themselves. Now, with her mother dead as well, Aris has to fend for herself, by herself.  
  
Aris knew that she could not stay at her home. She had no remaining relatives, none of which she knew of anyway, and her neighbors didn't care too much for children. For a 7 year-old, she had a clear head, and thought rationally; something that her mother had taught her always to do. However, she tried to remain calm as she walked solemnly down the long, dark hallway. Every floorboard cracked and creaked, as if taunting her into insanity. She just wouldn't give up. She just wouldn't.  
  
Back in her room, she packed some clothes and a few bare essentials into a duffel bag that her mother had given her. She only packed things on a `need to have' basis, because the duffel bag was bigger than her, and she could only take what she could carry. She had no mother to say that it was OK, and she had no strong father that could carry her bag for her. She was on her own.  
  
As she finished with her room, she went into the main quarters, pulled up a loose floorboard, and took the small hold-out blaster that was concealed there within its dark depths.  
  
Sticking that into her bag as well, Aris headed for the door. Checking her chrono, it was 3:27 in the morning, she stepped out into the cold, refreshing air of her homeworld, Chorkin VII. It was a windy moon, the 7th of 9, belonging to the planet Chorkin. It was the only moon in the Chorkin system that could sustain life.  
  
Letting the wind blow through her long, brown hair, Aris watched the air speeders zoom by. Her mother had kept Aris' hair long, as a tribute to the women on her mother's side. This was a sign of dignity and honor among the women in her family. She took one deep breath, letting the pure oxygen fill her tiny lungs, and looked back over her shoulder at her home for the last time.  
  
The lights of the closest city, Rabooka, reflected in her icy blue eyes. Aris knew this was the place that she had to go to for now. There was nothing left for her here; no family, no life, no future. She couldn't help but ask herself, *why was I spared?*  
  
As inappropriate as it was, she had to smile. How many 7 year olds had a chance to stare out into a world, that in just a few years time, would be all hers? Her mother had always told her to reach for the stars, and make the galaxy her own. And that is just what Aris would do. So, with that determination, and the thought of both of her dead parents on her mind, little Aris Dinell stepped over the threshold, and into a new world.  
  
13 Years Later  
  
"499,998...499,999...500,000 credits!" counted the crime lord, Trindell.  
  
"You are most gracious you majesty," said Dinell, taking the money from the Gotal crime lord.  
  
"Well, I only pay the best for the one who brings me what I need, or shall I say, what I want!!," he let out a disgusting laugh that made her cringe in pain. Jabba would have been proud. "You are a pretty good bounty hunter for your age, and..." he said reluctantly, "your gender."  
  
Aris, as defensive as she was, fought back the urge to call him a 'chauvinistic pig!' She hated sexist creatures. However, it didn't matter to her, for she was paid, and as far as she was concerned, she was never going to see him again.  
"Well Lord Trindell, I thank you very much, once again, and it was pleasure doing business with you. I hope our paths cross again someday."  
  
Smiling like a child on receiving a new toy, the Gotal replied, "As do I Miss Dinell, as do I."  
  
Aris Dinell, now 20, tall, and beautiful, bowed her head, allowing her long hair to drape over her nearly broad shoulders, and departed. In reality, she wanted to get as far away from this dull planet as she could, but most of all, she wanted to get as far away from Trindell as possible. He was absolutely vile. He repulsed her, in fact. He lived in filth, and she stunk of it too.  
  
After leaving her home on Chorkin VII at the age of 7, she went to the small city of Rabooka, just a days walk from her old home. From there, she raised herself, and stole only money to get the food she so desperately needed. She wasn't a nuisance per say, but she likes to think of it as her childhood getting the best of her.  
  
But at the age of 15, she stowed away on a starship named the Chanter's Luck. This ship, she found out, was headed to Coruscant. While on the core world, she became a bounty hunter, who almost never begged for jobs. After finally catching some job breaks, she became known as a fairly decent hunter. Aris swore she would never steal again, because as long as she was able, she could pay her own way. Along the way, she encountered a wide variety of creatures, some of whom tried to kill her, and a myriad of ships, some of which she destroyed herself.   
  
Aris walked through the long hallway of the crime lord's palace. *His place of residence is beautiful, I have to admit, but it is in utter need of cleaning droids. I guess that explains the phrase: 'Crime doesn't pay,' because he certainly doesn't have enough credits to hire a cleaning service.* She thought to herself and chuckled.   
  
Acting unaware, she looked at the elaborate wall fixtures. What looked like gods danced upon the walls, as heiroglyphs from an ancient time scrolled rusticly between each beautifully lit sconce. Aris took into much consideration the 'well hidden' trap doors and secret passages, that at any moment, a random henchman could pop out of, shoot her, and take her money. She wouldn't let that happen, that was for sure.  
  
This latest job she just finished required her to travel to the world of Mondel, where the renegade smuggler, Davin Kochet, ran away with his master's cargo. Of coarse, Kochet's boss was Trindell, who Aris had just collected 500,000 credits from for returning Kochet alive and kicking. This was not like her usual collections. She never got a sum of credits as large as 500,000 before.  
  
She didn't ask what was going to become of Davin Kochet, but quite frankly, she didn't really want, nor care to know. The only thing that Aris Dinell knew was that she had completed yet another job, and she was now 500,000 credits richer. It was time to celebrate. A slow smile creeped upon her luscious lips as she thought of this.  
  
She continued down the 'deserted' hallway, accompanied only by the gods, hieroglyphs, and the sound of her footsteps resonating off of the marble structure, until all that was left was a memory. 


	2. The New Assignment

*****the astericks marks represent thoughts*****  
  
Chapter 2  
  
In the dimmed light of the bar Aris sat in, she called over the server droid and ordered a drink.  
  
"I'll have a Lomin Ale please," she ordered kindly.  
  
"Just one minute please. Your drink will be out shortly." The droid replied.  
  
The sounds from the bar flooded toward her as she closed her eyes to listen, truely listen. After a few minutes of listening and watching the locals in the bar, she recieved her Ale, pulled out a toxins checking device, and once the drink was rendered 'drinkable,' she sipped at the green beverage. She let the spicy drink flow down her throat and slowly warm her body from the inside out.  
  
Suddenly, a mysterious man in a black cloak approached her. She picked a table in the back corner, so she could see everything that was happening in the bar at all times.  
  
There was something strange about this man, like Aris had met him before. "Hello," he said softly," you must be the ever popular Aris Dinell. I have heard a lot about you, and I have a proposition for you."  
  
Humorously, she said, "Well, I hope you only heard good things." Then after a few second's hesitation, she spoke. Intriguied, Aris replied, "Well, I am always up for propositions. What can I do for you?"  
  
"First," said the man softly, never taking his voice above a whisper, "you can start by buying me a drink."  
  
*Great, here we go again. Another head strong jerk.* "What'll you have?"  
  
He looked at her, as if trying to give her a clue. "I'll have a Corellian Whiskey, please."  
  
Aris thought to herself, *Ooooo, a mysterious man in a cloak with manners, how exciting!*  
  
Aris signaled the waiter and ordered the whiskey for the stranger. She thought it was funny, the way he looked left and right, and all around, as if he was some helpless prey, searching for a hiding spot.  
  
"So you were saying something about a proposition?" She said inquisitively.  
  
"Sure," the stranger settled back, like he was recalling a story that happened in another lifetime. "It all starts with this man named Nisroc Enab. You see, a long time ago, this man killed my wife. And an even longer time ago, he tried to kill me."  
  
He looked as though tears were building up in his eyes, but he quickly blinked them away. Noticing that right off the bat, Aris thought, *Just like a male to hide his true feelings.* "Now, here is where you come in," he continued, "your job is to find this man named Nisroc Enab, and capture this scum at all costs, but I want him alive. I need to know why he did such a thing!"  
  
"Yes, I see," remarked Aris with much interest, "but why, if you don't mind my asking, didn't you go to a bounty hunter right after this happened?"  
  
The man looked at her as if he expected her to know this. He opened his deep, brown eyes, once again, trying to tell her something. "Well, I thought that if I came out of hiding, he might to kill me and my daughter. So, naturally," he said 'matter-of-factly,' "I staged my own death."  
  
"Wow, that is a very deep story, Mr........" She remembered that she had never caught his name before.  
  
The stranger smiled slyly. "My name is not important right now. What is important though, is that you go to the Chorkin system, and go to the 7th moon of 9, and get information on this man, Nisroc Enab. This was the last place he had been supposedly. Do you understand the assignment?" He asked as if she hadn't been listening.  
  
But on the contrary, Aris was listening. Aris was listening very intently. *Is there some kind of connection here? This is very uncanny. My birth planet was Chorkin VII.*   
  
"Yes, I understand the assignment fully, and completely. And I am glad to take on this job. I might even have fun with it!"  
  
"Wonderful," the man shouted. "But, don't have too much fun. You do have a job to do. And, you don't want to mess up. Just be carefull."  
  
*Oooo, just like a man to tell a woman what to do. Granted he is my new employer, and he should tell me what to do, to a certain extent, but I don't need his lecture.*  
  
The stranger went on, "I thank you gratefully for your time, and I shall wait for your arrival on the world of Dathomir. Good bye Aris Dinell."  
  
Aris was now straining to hear this man's voice, and when she was inches from his face, the man slipped out of a back door in the bar. And as fast as he came, he was gone. Like many times before this Aris Dinell was left alone, but this time it was in the dingeyness and darkness of a bar. She let the swirling sounds swallow her, and tears formed in her deep, frosty blue eyes.   
  
There was definitely something strange about her new employer, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. But right now, that didn't really matter. All that mattered now was getting back to her home planet, which she thought was odd, and finding this mystery man named Nisroc Enab.  
  
She got up from her corner table, and left about 10 credits worth of tips. She thought this was more than generous of her, but Aris felt she had enough to spare.  
  
She breathed in deeply, for she wanted to remember what this bar she had visited smelled like. The thick aromas of smoke and alcohol, made Aris feel comforted for one reason or another. Dinell left the dimmed bar and interesting looking locals behind, and headed for the docking bay. Once she had spotted her Modified B-97 Turbospiked A-Wing, she said her voice identification phrase, and climbed into the cockpit. This was just about the only real familiar thing she had had. Aside from the on-board computer which served as her 'friend,' Aris had no one.  
  
However, this was no ordinary A-Wing she piloted. It had a rear extention to accomadate for a small sleeping quarters, and a storage space. Aris, at the touch of a button, could lay back her pilot's chair and push back into the extended quarters to serve as a bed. She herself, also modified the shields by 75%, making her ship as well protected from any disgruntled foe as a small Capital Starship. She recieved the shield modifier from a bounty she collected on.  
  
Also, she upped the speed of the already incredibly fast A-Wing by 10%, making it faster and more manuverable than the Milleniumm Falcon! This had helped her out of numerous sticky situations that could have led to her demise. Finally, she added 1 set of quad laser cannons, twin ion cannons, and a concussion missile launcher to the dual linked laser cannons the ship had already possesed.  
  
"This is Aris Dinell in the Heaven's Devil, requesting deactivation of the first shield, and permission to depart from Vetrouge."  
  
Vetrouge's Flight Control responded, "Permission granted Miss Dinell. Safe travels, and thank you for vacationing on the lovely planet Vetrouge."  
  
"Sure, if you call work a vacation," she sighed to herself.  
  
  
  
Somewhere in a far corner of the galaxy, a man very near balding sat thinking in a grand arm chair, looking somewhat perplexed. The sound of leather hide boots on the cold metal floor told him that his trusted assistant was drawing near. The temperature controlling unit was set up higher than usual, thus a slight breeze was whipping about. The black robe that clung to his bony shoulders moved very little as he breathed.  
  
The silence of space accompainied the perfectly quiet ship as it floated effortlessly through the star scape. The silence was interrupted by footsteps getting louder and louder. A man dressed in a general's uniform approached the star gazer. "S..sii...sir," the man stuttered, as if afraid of him, "we have located her. At your command, I will send someone to aprehend her."  
  
An evil grin played demonically upon his slightly wrinkled face. "Good!" He was beginning to raise his voice. "I will have at that whole family!" His shout was enough to disturb the evil serenity that space had to offer.  
  
The general nodded slowly as he saluted, abruptly turned, and rolled his eyes. *It has been far too long since I have gone along with this.*  
  
The sound of his boots once again notified the man of his presance, but only this time, the sound was getting fainter and fainter. The resonation billowed away as the man became a tiny speck in some grand hallway, that presented itself to lead to no where on the massive vessel.   
  
Even though the general departed, leaving the cloaked man alone, the ship still floated faithfully away, blending in with the space around it, until it could be seen no longer. 


	3. A Heritage So Strong

Chapter 3  
  
The Heaven's Devil came out of hyperspace right infront of the large, yellowish-purple system of Chorkin. Aris felt a slight chill run down her spine, and continued onward to her feet. She remembered everything about this system; after all, she had grown up here. Over the years, she has heard stories about her birth place. But, the last that was ever mentioned about Chorkin VII, was that it was overrun by smugglers and scavengers. So, Aris would have to prepare herself for the worst.  
  
She pointed her ship to by-pass the planet, and headed for the largest of the 9 moons. When she reached Chorkin VII, she felt a little heat from her ship colliding with the moon's semi-thick atmosphere. The Heaven's Devil zoomed toward the moon's night side.   
  
As she passed through the clouds, she tried to locate the city of Rabooka. The moon's green vegitation seemed to be welcoming Aris. They swayed as the warm breeze passed through their high branches, as though waving to her.  
  
Aris gazed on her sensor board and found that Rabooka was only a few minutes from where she flew now. Of coarse, if she was piloting anything other than her Turbospiked A-Wing at top speed, it would have taken her one standard hour.  
  
Then, just over the top of the highest mountain, she saw Rabooka's lights winking at her, as they did the very night she left home. The night time of her old world embraced her.  
  
Aris set down the Heaven's Devil on the outscirts of the once busy town. She jumped out of the A-Wing and landed softly on the lush ground. She would have to continue her treck to her old house by foot, as not to attract attention to herself.  
  
While in hyperspace, Aris thought to herself, what are the chances of me ever returning to this place for a bounty? I have to stop at home first, just to see what it looks like now. Then after that, I will continue on the search for Nisroc Enab.  
  
Her long, slender legs took large strides on the soft soil. She flipped on her infra-red goggles and continued on. She clutched her heavy disruptor pistal which had 3 settings- blast, disrupt, and stun- close to her slender body. It has been 5 years since she was here, Aris didn't know what to expect.  
  
***  
It was nearly sun-up, and Aris had long since removed her night-vision goggles. Also, she had put her hair up to keep it out of her face. She didn't want the sweat that clung to her forehead and neck to get into more hair than Aris could hlep. She felt different, not like she usually felt. She tucked a long strand of her golden, brown hair behind her ear. The local birds were chirping beautifully, and she knew she was close. Only the Blue-Bellied Lertin bird sang by her old home.  
  
Aris had been following the foothills a long ways, and she finally reached her old town. It seemed very deserted. Like a desert scene from a holodrama. There was no one around for what seemed like kilometers.   
  
She walked through all of the streets that took her home. The sun that supported life to the system beat down in the morning light, thus making the dew that formed on the vegitation evaporate quickly. Then, just as Aris turned the last corner, she saw it. Her old house was still there; barely. The walls that had once stood gracefully tall, and that had once made Aris feel safe and warm, were now half down, for what could have been ages. She tried to remember what it used to look like. The protecting trees and shrubs, and the beautiful fountain that stood in front, had long since been eaten away at by the decay of time...or something else.  
She approached the dilapidated mess with caution, like it was bound to blow up at any given moment. The rustic smell oozed from the remains as she walked over the thresh-hold. Seeing all that 'ground zero' had to offer, she asked to herself, "What happened here?"  
  
Aris had to step around everything to get to the main living quarters. She had vague memories of this once comforting place. Memories ranging from her first words to the time she left, had left a huge impact on the person she is today. After all, her mother had died here, leaving her all alone by herself.   
  
With that thought, she kept on walking around the rubble to get to her old room, stepping over this and that, occasionally tripping over odds and ends. Then she came to a relazation that smugglers had come to ransack the old home, thus making her house a nightmare! Both mentally for her, and physically for it.  
  
Continuing on toward her room, Aris tripped over something. She landed face-down in the dirt, eye-to-eye with a long and black, slender, metal box. "What the---?" Aris said out loud.  
  
After regaining her faculties, she picked up the box, as well as herself, and shook it slightly. The contents rattled inside. Trying to pull off the lid to the box, she realized that it was futile. Becomming fed up with almost breaking a nail, and more importantly, a sweat, she whipped out her heavy blaster pistal, and set the weapon on very, very low. She didn't know what to expect to be in the box, but as she pulled the trigger, a thin beam of icy blue light protruded from the barrel, and it sliced the top clear off of the black box. (This was a very powerful asset that helped her gain entrance to secret areas)  
  
She peered into the box, and she couldn't beleive her eyes. What she saw amazed her. Why didn't I see this box before? She thought to herself. Aris reached her hand into the black abyss that was the box, and removed the sleek and elegant lightsaber from its dark depths. She continued to gaze at the ancient weapon with awe.  
  
"There has to be an explanation for all of this." Aris told herself. And, letting the noises of the beautiful morning drown out, until only her soft, faint breathing could be heard, she pulled a data card from the same box. The data card looked just as old as the house and lightsaber themselves.   
  
Stuffing the data card and lightsaber, which she didn't turn on, for fear of who was lurking about, safely into her pack, she departed from her old, crumbling house, just as fast as she came. "Remember Aris, don't draw attention to yourself." She had to remind herself.  
  
As she headed back to the Heaven's Devil, many questions flashed through her mind. Who's lightsaber is this? Why didn't the scavengers pick this up when they raided my house? Aris guessed that all that really mattered was that she had possession of the ancient weapon, and she would stop at nothing to discover it's history. Even if it did mean that the new bounty was on 'hold' temperarily. Aris, for one reason or another, felt this had something to do with her mother....or the new bounty.  
  
***  
  
Aris Dinell spent the next day and a half walking back to her A-Wing, and despite her anxiety about the lightsaber and data card, she remained calm and didn't run to her ship. She had noticed about an hour after her departure from her once beautiful home, that someone was following her. She acted natural and breathed a sigh of relief as she put one hand on the cool hull of the Heaven's Devil.  
  
Well, I wonder what this guy wants to 'talk' about? Maybe I should let him catch up, so we can discuss a few things. As she watched the stranger come over the horizon on the lush, green moon, Aris recalled all of the tactics he had used for trying to hide his stalking ways. He had stayed far enough behind her that if she looked behind her in an open plain, she could not see him. He had also used the sounds around him to disguise his presance. Using the sound of birds chirping, or water trickling, he covered his tracks nicely. But, when night fell, he had shown himself. Aris veered off course, and the hunter shot straight past her. It took him all morning to get behind her and start following her again. She loved to play games with him.   
  
The humid morning made things more difficult. It would take the stalker longer to catch up with Aris, because he didn't have as well of breathing capabilities as Aris did in humid weather. So, she sat playfully on the hull of her ship, kicking her legs back and forth, like a child, and when he came into view, she noticed that he was rather short. He was also very slender, which had helped him considerably in trying to hide his tracks. He looked at her, still a large speck on the horizon, and she smiled and waved to him. This should be fun, she thought.  
  
The sun danced off the metal of the hull, making it comfortingly warm. Aris had to squint a little to block out the sun's harsh reflection. Climbing into the cockpit of her Turbospiked A-Wing, she hit the ignition button. It beautiful ship roared to life with ease. It was almost as if she was trying to taunt the stalker into following her.   
  
She activated her repulsorfilt engines, and pointed her faithful ship toward the invisible atmosphere. Equilizing her repulsorfits with the thrusters, Aris shot off toward the depths of space, to what she hoped would be, a cute little space battle!  
  
Among other things, Aris was skilled at battling in her A-Wing. She had once described it as another part of her flowing forward, and aiding her in what is definately needed to survive in space; a clear head, and the ability to think on your toes.  
  
Being considerably colder in space than it was on the moon, Aris shivered a bit. Her ship sat idle in the darkness of space, awaiting her follower. She gazed out of her large viewport at the Chorkin System and its serine beauty. She closed her eyes for a second just to mentally breathe, and she opened them, expecting to see him coming. By now, he was heading up from the atomosphere and facing her head on, about a kilometer away. He too flew an elegant ship. He had a Lunar Ray Elite, which was an upgraded Byblos G-1A Transport, but still no match for her Turbospiked A-Wing.  
  
She smiled and said calmly into the comm unit, "What do you want?"  
  
"Oh, don't ask the questions Dinell. Save your strength. You will need it to call for help when I pulverize you! I want you to surrender to me, it will be a lot easier than just killing you. Your audience is requested by my master." He was trying to intimidate her, but what he didn't know, was that it was futile.  
  
"Who is this 'master' you speak of. I want to know his name so I can personally track him down and tell him how much of a coward he is myself." Aris wanted explanations, and she wanted them now. However, she felt as though she would be answered soon.  
  
Tucking a long piece of golden brown hair behind her ear, something told her to shift her A-Wing down, and to the right. Just as she rocketed forward, she stomped on the right rudder pedal, and pulled on her joystick. Before the stranger's Byblos lasers had a chance to cut through the part of space that Aris was previously at, she was coming up behind his wide open aft, in a long, graceful arc.  
  
Aris wasn't the killing type. She perceived herself to be worse; the kind of person who would maim you, and leave you stranded in space for all eternity. She had always thought that death was the easy way out of things. So, she shot off a quick ion blast from her A-Wing's main ion cannon. The warning shot was purposly wide, thus it nicked the left engine, making the stranger pay attention to her position at all times. A smile flashed across her beautiful lips.  
  
It's all a game. So, the Byblos moved into what he thought was and unanticipated attack position. But, the not so bright stranger should have thought again. Wherever he went, Aris was there, right on his tail, being as unrelenting as ever.  
  
After what seemed to be 15 standard minutes of 1 sided tag, Aris finally ended up face to face with her not-even-500-lightyears-away-worthy-opponent. For once in a long time, they both stopped.  
  
"And how would you like it, my friend? In the head, for a quick death, or," she laughed out loud to show him that she was not even strained slightly, "in the chest, so you can suffer?"  
  
The stranger replied back, with obvious quivering in his voice, "I don't know. Is that not the question that I should be asking you?"  
  
"Stranger, I am giving you ample opportunity right now, to leave un-hurt. But, in a few seconds, I shall not be as lienient." Aris tried to persuade her stalker to change his ways.  
  
"You can run, but you-------"  
  
Aris didn't have any time to react. He had tricked her! While she thought he was going to continue talking, he shot off a dazzeling, blue display of ion blasts.  
  
At least he had the decency to not kill her, although he wanted her alive. Ahh, another mysterious man with manners... this must be my lucky couple of days. However, she wasn't worried about the blast at all, because the blue light danced playfully off of her forward shields.  
  
She laughed into the comm unit, "Is that all you-------" This time she had tricked him. "See, two can play at that game!"  
  
Before she fired her potentially deadly shots, Aris needed something to pierce his shields. Then, she came up with the answer.  
  
If she shot a single concussion grenage into his shield, it would temperarily open a hole in it, then all Aris would have to would be to fire an ion blast, and her foe would be a sitting Curtory Bird.  
  
And that was just what she did. She fired the concussion grenade, and watched the spinning ball of death fly beautifully from her ship, and smack right into the Byblos Transport's shields. That caused a massive shockwave that ripped open a hole wide enough for even Jabba to get through.  
  
I have to act quick! She thought. Tension was building as she punched the ion button. She saw the blue sparks splatter over his ship, and watched it go completely black, and vanished from her electro-range finding scanners. The only thing that would be left operable would be the comm unit. "That should teach you!" Aris laughed at herself as she began to speak again. "So, you can go back and tell your 'master' that if he wants to get me, he is going to have to try a lot harder that that. Oops, I almost forgot, you cannot go anywhere! You are stranded here for about 3 standard days. Ha! I hope you have rations...for your sake!"  
  
She continued to chuckle as she set course for Dathomir. The computer estimated a 7 hour trip. This will be just enough time to review my new personal effects. Aris told herself reassuringly.  
She felt as though the day was won, for she discovered a possible key to her past, vanquished a predator, and saved herself from what was to be a bloody end. As these great thoughts danced through her mind, she pushed forward 3 levers and vanished from real space.  
While in the cockpit, Aris hit a small red button on her control console, and her chair laid back, and it shot backward into the tunnel that led into the fairly large sleeping quarters.   
  
While in the domed room, she sat upright, and opened the fridge-unit. Aris was pleased to see that the Fizzlin was stocked up. She popped the top, and drank the cool beverage down. Aris gently placed the archaic data card in the proper slot, pressed 'play' and pulled the sleek lightsaber out of the bag.  
  
The holoscreen lit up like a Latern Bird in mating season. The tracking on the old card was pretty bad, but Aris delt with it. Suddenly, the image came into focus, and she knew who this bleek woman was. Her image was burnt into her 7 year-old memory.  
  
Her mother was staring back at her with worried eyes. She spoke, "Aris, hello. If you are viewing this message, then it is too late. You see, they are after me, and this message must be short.  
  
"The same people who killed your father are trying to hurt, possible kill me as well. Do you remember when I went away to a beautiful planet to get over your father's death? You were to young to remember, but I met this stranger in the street in front of the Royal Palace. The planet was Hapes. Well, this man gave me a gem that made my insides bubble. It was so beautiful. But, the only thing that I didn't understand, was why he wanted to give away such a valuable gem.  
  
"I later found out that this gem was recently stolen, and even if I told officials the truth, they would think that I stole it. So, naturally, knowing that I would have to come home to you, I hid it away. You see Aris, this gem is called the Rainbow Gem. It has no definate color, thus it changes colors to match those of a Hapan Rainbow. They are considered to be the rarest gem in the galaxy!  
  
"Now that the gem is in my possestion, there is a large bounty on my head. I don't know how they found out that I had it, but they are after me! I don't want to leave you parentless, but I fear that is what will happen.  
  
"Which brings me to my second thing that I wanted to tell you. The gem, it's hidden within the lightsaber. Whatever you do, do not lose it or sell the lightsaber.You see, Aris, my mother was a great Jedi,and it was passed onto my blood, which was passed down into yours. The reason I never told you about our Jedi heritage, was because after your father died, there was nothing else to live for...aside from you. You were everything to me, and I didn't want you to get involved in this fiasco. I wanted you to have a better life, and maybe even train as a Jedi Knight! I kept the stone because I thought that I could put it into the lightsaber, and you would always be equiped for anything.  
  
"Well Aris, I hate to say it, but I think it is time for me to go. They should be here any minute. Good bye. I love you!"  
  
And that was it. As fast as she came, she was gone. Gone. Again. Gone again. Aris stared blankly at the screen. Then a single tear glistened in her icy eye, as if they were melting. Her world was in slow motion, as the droplet fell, and splashed onto the smoke grey lightsaber handle.  
  
"Computer," she commanded, "set a new objective list. 1) While on Dathomir, tell my new employer that I cannot help him. And 2) find and capture the man who hurt my mother."  
"Initializing request...accepted....new objective list obtained." The on board computer turned off, and Aris thought that it was a good idea to turn in as well. So, she turned off the light and shut her eyes. 


End file.
